after many years of traveling and staying in hotels i have come to realise that there is no such thing as perfection.

the important thing about a hotel is that the parts that you like the most are the reasons that you go back for. the little things that irritate you about every place have to be overruled by the great things.

the Kempniski Estepona was not perfect, and there wasnt really anything that made me want to go back.

Pluses - the gardens are beautiful, the rooms are clean and a reasonable size. the breakfast has lots of choice but the service outside (if you could get a table) was painfully slow.

minuses - the SPA was closed for rennovation and they hadnt told us (wasnt even on their website). the restaurants were closed except one that served cooked frozen food (yes, really for a five star hotel this is poor), the service was mostly miserable (one staff member during our stay was semi-friendly) and slow. they charge 40 euro to use the relaxation bed in the grounds (unheard of by me) and needless to say no-one was using them. the beach is not child friendly (i.e. cannot make sand castles!)

I was under the impression that the service level was a national trait (Manyana), but after we ate at two restaurants outside the hotel which were fantastic everything I realised it was just this hotel.

I would like to go back to the area, but you can be sure I will not be staying here.

Getting around to some old reviews.. I stayed here last year with my wife. When looking at the pictures from the website, the place appears to be amazing. However, it's not quite as nice as it appears. It's still nice -- I mean you're in the South of Spain and along the coast -- how bad could it be? :-)

However, a few things in particular stand out to me:

- The beach is a bit rocky -- into the water it's very rocky. You won't be able to go into the water very far unless you have shoes, steel feet, or don't mind bleeding everywhere. If you go to other places not far away, the beach situation is a lot nicer.

- King bed = two beds pushed together. I think this is sometimes common in Europe but I hate it. Just get a real single king mattress!

- Sixt -- The onsite rental car place tried to screw us. The next day after I returned a car we rented for part of a day, they tried to tell me I had damage on the vehicle. I was rather astounded and thought they were kidding at first. We drove to one place -- parked for the day -- and drove back. Never was there an opportunity for the car to be damaged. I come out and they show me one of the smallest scratches I've ever seen in the front bumper. This wouldn't even register in the U.S.. Even more important.. I didn't do the damage. I video taped the whole thing and took pictures and refused to "fill out an accident report." You could use a sharpie to cover this up .. or touch up paint. What a joke. I said they were welcome to proceed how they saw fit and that I would dispute the whole thing. I never heard back from them. I assume it was some weird type of shake down. I'd recommend you video tape (with our phone) your car when you get in and when you return it for evidence against this kind of B.S.


If you're there -- you have to go to Gibraltar. Try to negotiate a cab rate in advance -- both there and back. They have a book they can pull out -- make sure you don't get ripped off.

I'd also highly recommend going to Tarifa! This place is amazing. It's quaint and has amazing beaches that are *empty*. I predict this place will become a big tourist destination one day. Tarifa has one of the ports you can catch a ferry to Morroco (Tanger). We did this on our trip and had a fun time. People there will try to sell you stuff pretty much non-stop. Very pushy. So be prepared to bargain or tell people no thanks 100,000,000 times.

Booked through a travelzoo special offer, we stayed here for 2 nights in October. We travelled by hire car and did find the hotel quite difficult to find but were not disappointed when we got there. The hotel is modern and luxurious. We had been allocated a room overlooking a very busy road and asked to be moved and were offered 2 alternatives. We chose a garden view room and were delighted with it. We went out to explore the area the first night, Estepona was very quiet at that time of year but looks like it would be a nice place in the summer months. The gardens and pool areas are beautiful and towels and sunbeds were plentyful with enough space between that it felt quite private. Breakfasts were fantastic with a huge selection on offer, eggs and pancakes are made to order for you. Dinner was included on our offer on one of the nights and we chose the second night as there was soul/80's singer/pianist entertainment on in the dining room that night. Dinner was from a restricted menu but was delicious and was served with wine as part of the offer. Loved the turn down service and the little sweet left by the bed. A lovely short break and great value for money. Would def recommend.

We had a side seaview room which was comfortable but did not get the sun. The hotel is lovely as are the gardens and pool area. You could sit wherever on the lawned areas and were never in earshot of other guests. We spent four nights there in June and were disappointed to find only one restaurant open, which was pricey and so was the wine. We were told the seafood restaurant near the beach was closed - one night because of a private function and the other day because of a wedding. Don't know what happened on the other two nights. Fortunately we had a car so went out most days. Estepona is delightful and you can eat very cheaply there in comparison. The situation of the hotel is such there there is nowhere to walk out to - so a car is essential. It is also difficult to access the hotel if you are coming from the north. You can see the hotel but to get to the other side is not well signposted. We went past the hotel two or three times before we located the exit to the hotel. Would recommend the hotel for a short break but make sure that there is more than one restaurant open - after all it is supposed to be five star!!